International Sanctions

As we contemplate how to strike back at North Korea because it is believed to be behind the hacking of Sony Pictures Entertainment's computer network, the foremost proposal is tightening sanctions. In my visits to targeted countries, I have seen how this strategy can be cruel to innocent people who know nothing about international disputes and are already suffering under dictatorial leaders. The imposition of economic embargoes on unsavory regimes is most often ineffective and can be counterproductive. In Cuba, where the news media are controlled by the government, many people are convinced that their economic plight is caused by the United States and that they are being...

Related "International Sanctions" Articles

As we contemplate how to strike back at North Korea because it is believed to be behind the hacking of Sony Pictures Entertainment's computer network, the foremost proposal is tightening sanctions.
In my visits to targeted countries, I have seen how this...

WASHINGTON — In the spring of 2004, state Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff and a delegation of Pennsylvania business officials headed to Cuba, aiming to make some connections.
At the end of the five-day trip, they brought back contracts to sell...

Steve Ragosta took a puff and declared: "Cuban cigars are overrated.
"The Honduran cigars are just as good," he added, rolling the small barrel of tobacco between his fingers with precision and passion while sitting at G&E Smoke Shop...

President Barack Obama said on Friday that Sony Pictures Entertainment made a mistake in pulling the 'The Interview' from theaters, after the FBI announced that North Korea was responsible for the cyber attack on the entertainment company.
"Yes...

An Allentown district judge accused of "nasty, rude, erratic and strange" behavior during hearings in her courtroom filed her response Friday, acknowledging she is "passionate" on the bench but denying she acted improperly.
District...

When the U.S. envoy to Syria -- an area that's been overtaken by violence and human rights violations since mid-March -- testified before a Senate panel Tuesday, only Pennsylvania's U.S. Sen. Bob Casey stayed to ask him any questions. From...

In the wake of democratic uprising in Libya, Yemen and other Arab nations, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey chaired a hearing Wednesday to ensure focus on human rights violations in Iran is not lost. In his opening statement, Casey said the...

The United States and Iran are drafting elements of a nuclear deal that commits Tehran to a 40 percent cut in the number of machines it could use to make an atomic bomb, officials told The Associated Press on Thursday. In return, the Iranians would get...

Cruise lines are looking to send their ships to Cuba as soon as general tourism is allowed, executives said Tuesday at the industry's biggest annual convention in Miami Beach.
Travel to Cuba has been loosened under new U.S. regulations, but it remains...

Cuba travel information on flights and hotels is now searchable on Kayak.com.
The travel search engine last Thursday made the decision to add information about flights originating outside the U.S. on Aeromexico, Copa Airlines and other carriers that go...

Cuban President Raul Castro demanded on Wednesday that the United States return the U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay, lift the half-century trade embargo on Cuba and compensate his country for damages before the two nations re-establish normal relations....

President Obama ordered new economic sanctions Friday against North Korea aimed at increasing financial pressure on the rogue state's leadership, a preliminary retaliatory action by the administration in response to what it calls the “destructive and...

President Barack Obama said on Friday that Sony Pictures Entertainment made a mistake in pulling the 'The Interview' from theaters, after the FBI announced that North Korea was responsible for the cyber attack on the entertainment company.
"Yes...

From bus drivers to bartenders to ballet dancers, many Cubans are already imagining a more prosperous future after the United States said it will put an end to 50 years of conflict with the communist-run island.
News of the historic shift echoed...

William Gibson in Washington, Mike Clary and Emily Miller in Miami, and Tracey Eaton in Havana

President Barack Obama on Wednesday abruptly ended more than 50 years of U.S. attempts to isolate Cuba, ushering in sweeping changes that will connect Floridians to the island through increased travel, business and communication links.The policy will have...

For decades, the U.S. embargo on Cuba has been as much about domestic as foreign policy. In the end, a generational shift in the politics of one key state opened the way for the Obama administration to change half a century of efforts to isolate the...

A Ukrainian naval vessel in the Azov Sea was attacked by artillery from the shore on Sunday, and a rescue operation was under way, a military spokesman for the Ukrainian government said.
Andriy Lysenko said the vessel was a naval cutter. There was no...

Russia on Thursday began rolling out a sweeping embargo on food imports from the United States, members of the European Union and allied nations in response to those countries' economic sanctions for Moscow's aggressiveness in Ukraine.
Prime Minister...

Russian authorities accused Ukraine of trying to kill law enforcement officials who were checking reports of cross-border shooting on Friday by firing a volley of mortar rounds over the frontier into Russia.A Russian security official said up to 40 mortar...